This invention relates generally to sleep apnea, and more specifically to an electrode holder, headwear, and wire jacket adapted for use in sleep apnea testing.
Sleep apnea is a serious, potentially life-threatening breathing disorder characterized by brief interruptions of breathing during sleep. In a given night, the number of involuntary breathing pauses or “apneic events” may be as high as 20 to 30 or more per hour. These breathing pauses are almost always accompanied by snoring between apnea episodes, although not everyone who snores has this condition. Sleep apnea can also be characterized by choking sensations. The frequent interruptions of deep, restorative sleep often lead to early morning headaches and excessive daytime sleepiness.
Certain mechanical and structural problems in the airway cause the interruptions in breathing during sleep. In some people, apnea occurs then the tongue and throat muscles relax during sleep and partially block the opening of the airway. When the muscles of the soft palate at the base of the tongue and the uvula relax and sag, the airway becomes blocked, making breathing labored and noisy and even stopping it altogether. Sleep apnea also can occur in obese people when an excess amount of tissue in the airway causes it to be narrowed. With a narrowed airway, the person continues their efforts to breathe, but air cannot easily flow into or out of the nose or mouth. Unknown to the person, this results in heavy snoring, periods of no breathing, and frequent arousals causing abrupt changes from deep sleep to light sleep.
During the apneic event, the person is unable to breathe in oxygen and to exhale carbon dioxide, resulting in low levels of oxygen and increased levels of carbon dioxide in the blood. The reduction in oxygen and increase in carbon dioxide alert the brain to resume breathing and cause an arousal. With each arousal, a signal is sent from the brain to the upper airway muscles to open the airway; breathing is resumed, often with a loud snort or gasp. Frequent arousals, although necessary for breathing to restart, prevent the patient from getting enough restorative, deep sleep.
The present invention relates to devices intended to promote the efficiency, quality and accuracy of sleep apnea testing. Testing is performed using a number of surface electrodes applied to the skin of a patient and connected through lead wires to a polysomnograph. The polysomnograph monitors the patient's sleep by converting electrical impulses in the body to a graphical representation. Quality and accuracy of any recording are directly related to the quality and accuracy of the input signals. Factors affecting input signals include improper placement of the electrodes and failure to properly secure the electrodes throughout testing.
Prior to testing, the patient is prepped or “hooked up” by a polysomnographic technologist. This involves attaching a number of electrodes on the patient's scalp, face, chin, chest, and legs. The process is painless, but generally time consuming. Each electrode is attached to the skin by completely filling a cavity of the electrode with an adhesive electrolyte gel, cream or paste. Standard commercial gels and pastes include ECG2 by Grass/AstroMed, Ten20 and Nu-Prep by Weaver, and Elefix by Nihon Kohden. In some cases, double sided adhesive washers are also used to hold the electrode in place. Failure to maintain a proper and firm attachment of the electrode to the skin throughout testing generally contributes to motion artifacts which disrupt the input signal and cause bad recordings. Overspreading of the electrolyte gel can also reduce the quality and accuracy of the recording. The electrolyte gel has a bad smell, and is generally cold and uncomfortable.
The present invention provides an alternative means for securing electrodes to the skin of the patient. The invention substantially reduces patient prep time, requires only a very small amount of gel, and provides improved electrode attachment resulting in reduced signal interruption and more accurate recordings.